BigWind spreading further into Ohio

In other news, Exelon has announced its intention to build in Seneca County which, we believe, is an Alternative Energy Zone. (This means the county can NOT deny the massive tax break) Initial papers have been filed with the OPSB (aka Say Yes to Wind board). Whether or not they will obtain their certificate of approval before year’s end may affect their ability to secure 100% of the federal Production Tax Credit. We encourage everyone to read the article below where speculation about wind development after 2016 raises questions about the viability of wind. To obtain the PTC, projects must commence construction before December 31, 2016 OR obtain “safe harbor” by expending 5% of the total project costs.

“The late-2015 PTC extension and recent guidance from the Internal Revenue Service mean that any wind project that begins construction in 2016 has until the end of 2020 to reach completion while still qualifying for the full PTC – currently worth $23/MWh for 10 years. Rather than entering physical construction, developers also have the option of ‘safe harboring’ a project by incurring 5% of the total cost and taking delivery of the components purchased, in which case they still have four years for the build-out. The four-year window applies to projects that enter construction in future years, but such projects will only receive a fraction of the full PTC: 80% for those that qualify in 2017, 60% in 2018, and 40% in 2019. Building a US wind farm with 80% or less of the PTC “would be difficult”, Polsky says. As long as there are enough projects that have qualified for the full PTC, “there will be no projects built at 60% or 80%.” Polsky is the CEO of Invenergy which is developing a project in Hardin County in addition to EverPower.…

The US wind business cheered the multi-year production tax credit extension clinched at the end of 2015, and the gradual step-down of support that came with it. But as mid-year reality sets in, big names in the industry, including Invenergy chief executive Michael Polsky, are wondering whether the PTC phase-out – which begins on 1 January 2017 – will hold much value after all….

If you visit Fairneny — and people are; people from Savoy, in particular, where a wind farm is being proposed — he will likely employ colorful language to explain to you why industrial wind turbines are a bad deal from the standpoint of noise, alleged health risks, and impact on the environment and property values. "We're screwed here," he say […]

WPD Canada has stated that the company’s board of directors have decided not to proceed with an appeal of that decision, and will not be moving ahead with what would have been an eight-turbine project.

The construction of a larger 30 megawatt capacity wind project in the same general area northwest of Kimball where a decommissioned wind project has existed in the past will triple the amount of power generated.